


The Warden in Skyhold

by wargandproud



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-30
Updated: 2014-12-30
Packaged: 2018-03-04 07:00:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,340
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2956727
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wargandproud/pseuds/wargandproud
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Imagined scenario where The Hero of Ferelden is there for the events of Here Lies the Abyss.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Warden in Skyhold

**Author's Note:**

> My Hawke and my Warden both came across as more assholey in this than I intended but I kinda like it. I've always thought that they wouldn't like eachother very much.

It had all happened without much warning. A messenger at dawn, sent ahead to warn them of the imminent arrival of the Hero of Ferelden, eager to help with the effort against Corypheus' warped Wardens. That was the first any of them had heard about her coming. But Hawke supposed that her cousin went where she willed and assumed a warm reception when she got there.  Saving the whole country from an arch-demon granted you certain liberties.

Alistair had certainly not mentioned it, and if he had known his wife was coming to Skyhold he would have been unable to contain himself. It was a running joke, how many unrelated sentences it took to get him to talk about her. Varric held the record with two. Hawke had decided not to wake him, the thought of the poor man having a stroke when he was taken unawares by the wife he had been talking about for weeks seemed too funny to pass up. 

Instead their rather small welcoming party consisted of her, the Templar Cullen (who had taken an awful lot of convincing despite knowing her cousin from her days in the Ferelden circle), Lady Montilyet and Leliana, who had been Solana's companion during The Blight. The Inquisitor was in Val Royeaux, she wondered how the elf would deal with a living legend turning up unannounced at her doorstep while she was away. 

A horn blew from atop the gates, and slowly the interwoven iron bars began to rise. Then in rode Lady Solana Amell on a dark horse trailed by a mabari hound, not a Lady in truth after the souring of their family's fortunes, but most granted her the title. Her shortness took Hawke by surprise, as it usually did. With all the stories it was easy to forget that her cousin was a human being, not a god who walked among them. 

It had been a long time since the two had met last. She had needed a Grey Warden’s assistance with her fight against Corypheus and had decided to utilise her _family connections_. Her cousin had been much too busy to work with her, she was off on some secret task neither she nor Alistair would tell her about, and Maker knew that man loved to talk. So off he had come with her, becoming more despondent each day he was separate from his wife. Hawke was glad her cousin had chosen to grace them with her presence, she was not sure she could bare another analysis of the woman.

Cullen raised a hand to help Solana down from her horse, ever the gentleman. She winked at him once safely on the ground, looked him swiftly up and down and announced,

"You've changed", causing the Templar to blush a shade of beetroot that Hawke was not sure she had seen a human being reach before. She guffawed, so that was the way of it. Her cousin certainly knew how to make an entrance, she had to give her that.

Solana turned to her and took her hand. “Cousin,” she smiled, a touch frostily. Hawke couldn’t much blame her, she had grown up in a Circle and they had treat her relatively well. No doubt she held Hawke responsible for her friends there being suddenly cast into the world without a master to hold their leashes.

Solana greeted the rest of the party, shaking Cassandra by the hand and pulling Leliana into a one armed hug. The spymaster was beaming, Hawke had not seen her crack a smile since she arrived in Skyhold.

"Where is Alistair? Is he okay?" Solana asked searching around, a flicker of panic in her eyes.

"He is fine Solana, he-"

"YOURE DAMN BLOODY RIGHT I’M FINE." Hawke jumped as she was shoved aside by a bed-headed Alistair, wearing a bed shirt, leather breaches and two odd shoes, clearly grabbed in a rush.

Solana's face lit up.

"My l-," she began, but stopped short as she was pulled into a crushing embrace. The two held each other for a moment, Solana burying her face tightly in Alistair's shirt, and when they separated Alistair was wiping his eyes.

"Why did nobody wake me? I overheard some washerwomen talking outside my room and had to rush down to see if it was true." He kept his arm around her, his hand shaking a little, and Hawke had to admit she felt a certain longing for Anders. She wondered where he was.

"We wanted to surprise you Alistair," Leliana laughed, her smile changing her whole face.

Lady Montilyet, clearly trying to restore the proper order to the arrival of such an esteemed visitor began, 'Warden Amell, if you wish I can show you to your chambers-'

Alistair beamed, and in one swift motion swept Solana up into his arms as one might carry a child, which made her squeal.

"Already taken care of! No need!"

He strode off in the direction of Skyhold's main hall with his wife still in his arms, as Solana yelled back to the group,

"We'll talk later Leliana!". The Spymaster waved her away, giggling. 

As the pair departed Hawke could have sworn she heard the usually reserved Lady Montilyet mutter under her breath,

_“Fereldens.”_

 

* * *

 

The battle was over. Inquisitor Lavellan, several of her companions, as well as Hawke and Alistair had fallen into The Fade, and they had made it out in one piece. All except one. Instead of triumph at their success, Inquisitor Lavellan had only one word running through her mind as she delivered her hopefully rousing speech.

_Shit._

_I took Warden Amell's hero lover into The Fade_

_I got him killed. Shit._

_A fist fight between me and the Hero of fucking Ferelden is gunna be bad for morale._

_I wonder if Sera will take bets._

And then it was done. The Grey Wardens were banished from Orlais. A lone elf had single handedly ended an ancient order that had saved Thedas from certain destruction. She dearly hoped she had not just screwed them all. As the battlements began clearing she climbed down from the raised deck. Dorian was quickly at her side, face full of concern. 

"Quite a speech, are you alright?" He asked. 

"I'm fine," she lied, she was so exhausted she could barely stand. "Has Lady Amell been told what happened?"

Dorians face darkened and he shrugged. "Hawke went to find her. Such a shame". His face darted to one side as he saw who was approaching.

"Inquisitor!?" Lavellan felt a gloved hand grab her shoulder, pulling her around. 

Lady Amell had clearly been told. When Lavellan had first met her she had been struck by how composed the woman seemed. Her every move seemed practised, she said very little if it was not necessary. Now she appeared to be every inch a woman coming undone. Her mask of calm was shattered, tears streaking through the dirt and blood. The braid she wore to keep her hair out of her face was unravelling, and she had lost one of her gauntlets. 

Hawke was with her.

"Cousin please, this is unwise" she pleaded with The Warden, tugging at her arm to pull her away. She was pushed her away as though one might swat an annoying fly. She kept her grasp on Lavellan’s coat so tight that the skin beneath started to sting. 

"Inquisitor please, I have lost everything I have, everything I will have, to this cause", her eyes were wide. "Grant me this one request." 

Hawke shook her head, still tugging on her cousin to pull her away, "The Inquisitor cannot help you with this." 

Levellan swallowed, hard, and tried to keep her voice from faltering. It would not do to show weakness in front of these women.

"What would you have of me?"

Varric was physically restraining Cole who was clearly desperate to help. A challenge, given his small stature.

"Send me into The Fade. Please I have to find him."

 _Shit_. 

"You'll die Solana, the fact we made it out was a miracle", Hawke continued to protest.

"You made it out because of Alistair, Hawke, it was no miracle." Lady Amell wiped her eyes rapidly. "Do not claim this was The Maker’s work". She tightened her grip on Lavellan’s arm, her eyes wide and pleading. 

"Please Inquisitor, I am not a woman accustomed to begging."

Lavellan jumped as Solas tapped her shoulder, urgency in his voice as he muttered into her ear, "Inquisitor do not let sentiment get the better of you. You must not do this, anything could be waiting on the other side."

"My Lady," she cringed at the human title, "I am sorry for your loss, but even if this was a wise course of action I am not able to open direct portals to The Fade at will. This was an accident. It is not possible." Solas did her a credit by even thinking she could attempt it. 

"Solana please, we should leave, this is a foolish plan-"

Something in The Warden snapped. She turned to Hawke, breaking her hold on the Inquisitor. She pointed her finger sharply into her cousin’s chest, and Lavellan saw that for the first time since they'd met Hawke looked afraid.

"Do not _dare_ tell me what I should do Hawke," she spat, "Alistair is dead and you got to live. You get to live another day without a care in the world, as usual." Their faces were inches apart, Hawke’s had turned into a scowl.

"That's not fair Solana."

" _Life’s not fair,”_ Solana hissed. “I know that may be news to you, you who tore this world apart and left us to fight each other for the pieces, all at the bidding of the _apostate you were fucking_.”

Then everything happened at once. Hawke stepped backwards, grabbed her staff from behind her and swung it at Lady Amell’s face, no magic needed. " _Fuck you_!" she screeched as Solana dodged. The Warden’s reflexes were slow, Hawke’s staff grazed the side of her head, unravelling her braid further. "You would be rotting in some circle prison otherwise!" 

Lavellan snapped to and sprung a barrier between the two women as Amell looked ready to retaliate. 

"ENOUGH" she bellowed, with a force she did not know she possessed. "We have lost enough today without losing our dignity".  She gestured wildly at Varric, who swooped in to save his friend. 

"Come on Hawke" he said, pulling at her sleeve. Hawke glared at her cousin but allowed herself to be lead away, clearly still seething.

Lavellan turned back to Lady Amell, who without anyone to yell at simply looked lost. Lavellan watched as the woman crumbled, a different creature from when they first met. She had taken her by surprise after she returned from Val Royeaux. She was sitting in the inn with Alistair as though it was the most normal thing in the world, a patient smile on her face as he rambled on with some tale and her head resting lightly on his shoulder. Cassandra had had to point out who she was. 

She began weeping again, large ugly sobs. She wiped the first tears away but soon realised the cause was lost and let them fall.

"Please Inquisitor, I- I can't leave him alone in the dark." 

Lavellan reached forward slowly, and placed her hand on the Warden’s arm. Lady Amell did not look as if she registered the touch 

"My Lady I can't. I am so sorry. We will make sure his death was not in vain."

Lady Amell sniffed and rubbed her face with the back of her hand. Her face went slack and she spoke in a slow monotone, trying to regain some sense of control. She looked at Lavellan but her eyes were not focused.

"Do I have your permission to return to Skyhold Inquisitor, or am I banished with the others?"  _Another sniff_. "I must decide my next course of action."

Levellan wondered what her clan would say if he saw her now, deciding the future of the actual Hero of Ferelden. Her tale had even reached the Dalish, they all knew of the wolves of the Brecelian Forest.

"Of course, you may stay with us as long as you wish."

'Thank you'. She glanced around, unsure what to do. Solas strode forwards and gave her his arm. 

"Come my lady, I will get you something to help you sleep." He lightly guided her in the direction of where the soldiers were setting up camp. 

Cole went to follow but Lavellan put out her arm and barred his path.

"Give her a while to calm down Cole."

It had been a very long day.

* * *

 

Warden Solana Amell, Hero of Ferelden, picked her way through the gardens of Skyhold, past playing children and wide eyed soldiers who nudged each other and not so quietly asked- _'is that who I think it is_?' She paid them no mind. Once people got over their star-struck wonder the first thing they usually commented on was how short she was. 

She spotted her quarry lounged beneath an oak tree, alone, but gazing at those around her like a ruling empress. Not much had changed. 

"Morrigan?" She called, and to her surprise the witch actually looked startled.

"I did not think you were still here, my friend," Morrigan noted in her usual low smoky tone. Alistair had done a pitch perfect impression of it when they were making love once, which had made her choke and gave her a coughing fit which lasted ten minutes. She smiled at the memory but flinched at the sharp twisting in her gut that came with it. 

"I leave tomorrow, but I wanted to see you before I left." Solana sat down slowly next to her old friend, wincing slightly. She had been wounded in the fight at Adamant but had not realised until she took off her armour later, the pain of it barely piercing her grief induced fog. 

"You are well?" Morrigan asked, an eyebrow raised. She had stayed behind when the army departed, but clearly news had reached her. 

"Getting better." Solana blinked rapidly, lest she start crying again. She had not wanted to leave her room at all until she dreamed an odd dream, where a skinny boy in a wide brimmed hat had stood by her bed and whispered- _h_ _e wasn't alone, a Warden in robes and a dark beard was with him. He stayed by his side so he wouldn't be afraid._  She hadn't been able to stop thinking about it. But she had been able to venture outside after days of lying in her bed and rejecting all offers of food, curled around her aged mabari.  

Morrigan flashed her a knowing smile, eyes sad. "He was a good man. I'm sorry for what happened."

"Not getting soft on me are you Morrigan?" Solana nudged her playfully and she laughed. She clearly was softer or she would never have tolerated such a thing, friend or not.

"The years have changed all of us I think. You especially, from what I’ve heard it seemed you were going to kill Hawke. When first we met you wouldn’t say boo to a goose.”

Solana frowned. “I should not have said some of those things.”

“We say things we don’t mean when we are in pain,” said Morrigan, who Solana was sure had never said a cruel word in her life without meaning every bit of it. Still, she appreciated the effort. She followed Morrigan’s gaze to a group of playing children, among them was a small boy with dark hair and golden eyes.

"That is your son?" She tried to keep her voice light, but something in her tone gave away her strain. She had hoped to see the boy before she left, in truth. Part of her hoped she would be able to see a glimpse of Alistair in him. She would never know what his children looked like otherwise. 

"I kept him away from you in case he upset you. I didn't want him involved in any petty squabbles." 

"Don't be foolish Morrigan, you and he saved us." She remembered going to Alistair that night and telling him what must be done. He had protested- _t_ _his is blood magic_ , and for one heart wrenching moment she thought he would rather die than attempt it. She had lied through her teeth, _this is something different,_ and because she was a mage he had taken her at her word. How quickly she had thrown away her values when their own necks were on the line. 

“I wanted to thank you actually. You gave me that past ten years of my life."

"That sounds very final."

It was. She would not see the end of this war. She had survived situations before that none should have lived through, she should have been executed for Jowan’s escape, should have died fighting the archdemon. But enough was enough. It was time to die on her own terms.

"Hawke’s dwarven friend has arranged for me to travel to Orzammar. He made much of the fact that King Harrowmont owes me a favour, and a dozen dwarves sprung out of the woodwork to give me passage."

Morrigan said nothing. She knew fine well what Solana sought at Orzammar. 

"What of your work on The Calling?"

The Calling. _The Wardens were afraid for their lives_ , Leliana had said, thinking that was what she wanted to hear. Folly. Their lives were not theirs to fear for, if they died fighting darkspawn then they had done their job. They were cowards looking for the easy way out. Because of them Alistair had died years, potentially decades before his time if her work had born fruit, for no good reason at all.

"What of it? The Wardens are not what they were. Perhaps it is best they fade away, an old relic from a different time. Take it, if you wish. I was close." She sighed. "Very close, in fact."

She paused, tears that had been threatening to appear began silently falling. She did not wipe them away. She did a lot of crying recently.

"I have never known pain like this Morrigan." She said quietly. “You must think so little me, so lost without my husband by my side.”

Morrigan shook her head. "No, I understand. I would not have, when we first met, but I now know what it is like to love another with everything you have." Her gaze rested on her son again. This was a very different Morrigan to the one she travelled with all those years ago.

"It is strange, being together again. I half expect to see Zevran emerging from the servant’s quarters, or catch Sten in the kitchen eating cakes. Have you met with the _spymaster_ yet?"

Morrigan snorted. " _Spymaster_. And they are all so afraid of her! Perhaps we should enlighten them of how she used to sit caterwauling by our campfire and we all had to sit and listen to her in awkward silence.” 

Solana giggled for the first time in the week since they had departed Adamant. She felt half an apprentice again, sitting cross legged on the desks in the library and teasing the new Templar recruits.

It was pleasant in this garden. She could see why Morrigan lingered here.

"I should go, I wanted to speak to The Inquisitor before I left."

Morrigan nodded sadly, and if she didn’t know her better Solana would have sworn she saw tears pricking her old friend’s eyes. A trick of the light, perhaps.

"Good luck my friend. Perhaps we shall meet in whatever world is to come." The witch said after some time.

"Thank you Morrigan."

As she left the gardens Cullen passed her by. Solana couldn't resist flashing him a wolfish grin, and she laughed as he flushed scarlet and dropped the books he was carrying before scuttling back into the doorway he came from. 

She felt younger than she had in years. 


End file.
